$575,000 Mare in Foal to American Pharoah Starts Day 2 of Keeneland January Sale

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$575,000 Mare in Foal to American Pharoah Starts Day 2 of Keeneland January Sale

January 10, 2017

LEXINGTON, KY (Jan. 10, 2017) – Tuesday’s second session of Keeneland’s January Horses of All Ages Sale began with the $575,000 sale of the Mineshaft mare Joyfully, in foal to 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, and the $370,000 sale of the preceding horse in the ring, Joyfully’s yearling colt by Uncle Mo. Both horses were consigned by Paramount Sales, agent.

Oussama Aboughazale’s International Equities Holding bought Joyfully, a 5-year-old daughter of the Forestry mare Rejoicing who is a half-sister to Grade 3 winners Divine Oath and Auntie Joy. Her third dam is Hall of Famer Personal Ensign.

Aboughazale said both Joyfully and Delightful Joy, his $700,000 purchase on Monday, would be bred to War Front.

"(Joyfully) is lovely and the foal sold very well just before her. I think it’s a good buy, I hope," Aboughazale said. "I just bought my farm here, and we have to stock it up with nice mares. We want to start well; that’s why we are buying nice mares. There will be a few more (mares to buy) today and that’s it. I think we are very satisfied and have bought very well. We want to breed to sell and breed to race.”

“It was on the upper side (of what I expected); it was a great price for both mare and foal," Costello said. "They were two lovely horses. (The Uncle Mo colt is) a beautiful, big-walking horse and so he deserved to bring that money. He was a good colt and the mare was absolutely beautiful. When they produce that kind of foal, you know they are a good mare. I think that particular package was a beautiful package and it probably stood out in the sale.”

The session's top-priced weanling colt was a son of Uncle Mo sold to Hillwood Stable (Ellen M. Charles) for $385,000. Warrendale Sales, agent, consigned the yearling, who is out of the Salt Lake mare Gone to Utah and is a half-brother to stakes winner Away We Go from the family of Grade 1 winner Ogygian.

Springhouse Farm paid $460,000 for Chocolate Pop, dam of Grade 2 winner Airoforce in foal to Bernardini. Four Stars Sales, agent, consigned the 11-year-old daughter of Cuvee out of the With Approval mare White Chocolate. She is from the family of Grade 1 winner Sea Cadet and Grade 2 winner On Target.

Mulholland Springs, agent, consigned a yearling filly by Shanghai Bobby sold to Hunter Valley Farm for $280,000. Out of the Giant's Causeway mare Saravati, she is a half-sister to Japan Group 3 winner Mask Zoro from the family of Grade 1 winner You.

“She was by far the best (yearling) offered today," Hunter Valley's Fergus Galvin said. "The sire (Shanghai Bobby) we are huge fans of; we think he is going to be one of the top freshman sires for this year. I’d say she will be re-offered, we are not sure yet. At that sort of (price), it’s a bit more than you would like, but she’s just the real deal, by far our pick for the day. Quality is shining through. Anything that especially looks like her is going to be at the top end of the market, and you have to be prepared to pay for it.”

"She is almost black, has a beautiful head and walk," Martha Jane Mulholland of Mullholland Springs said. "Her body is so mature that she looks like she will be a grand yearling. She had it all. We knew she would sell well. A lot of people were very interested in her."

Tizsomthingspecial, a 4-year-old daughter of Tiznow cataloged as a racing or broodmare prospect, sold for $240,000 to Mayday B. Branham. Gainesway, agent, consigned the filly, a half-sister to Grade 3 winner and stakes winner Meshell. Her dam, the Tale of the Cat mare Kobla Kat, is a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Quality Road.

Steve Castagnola signed the ticket to purchase the stakes-winning Street Boss mare On the Backstreets, in foal to Into Mischief, for $235,000 in the name of Kempton, agent for Not This Time/AFS. Out of Mutakaway, by Mutakddim, the 6-year-old On the Backstreets also was consigned by Mulholland Springs, agent.

“Anyone who saw this mare’s races would have been impressed," Martha Jane Mulholland said. "She had a dramatic turn of foot down the lane in those two stakes wins at Santa Anita. She is in foal to one of the hottest sires in the nation. She is an obvious addition to anyone’s broodmare band.”

Mulholland and partners purchased On the Backstreets for $65,000 at the 2015 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.

“Every year we try to buy good prospects either off the track or at the sales and breed them to hot sires," she said. "That is where we make a lot of our income.”

Nancy From Nairobi (GB), winner of the 2016 Royal Heroine (G2) at Santa Anita, sold for $210,000 to BBA Ireland. Cataloged as a racing or broodmare prospect, the 6-year-old daughter of Sixties Icon (GB) is out of the Hawk Wing mare Madame Hoi. She was consigned by Lane's End, agent.

“She is going to Japan," Michael Donohoe of BBA Ireland said about Nancy From Nairobi, who last raced in the Matriarch (G1) on Dec. 4 at Del Mar. "She is going to ship out as soon as possible to Japan. There is obvious interest in the pedigree. It is quite good (and has) a Japanese horse (Group 3 winner Sweet Salsa). (Nancy From Nairobi) is a graded stakes winner, a very good-looking filly. She fit the program in Japan."